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The emotions swirling around inside me are confused, and I’m not ready to look at him because I know without any measure of doubt that Cain Archer will be able to read me.
He always does.
And right now, I’m not sure what he will see.
Whether it’s jealousy or longing, either way, I don’t want him to see the truth. But that’s the thing. Cain Archer always sees the truth with me. Which is alarming and sends off major red flags, seeing as we’ve only known each other for such a short amount of time.
“We can leave,” he says, but I don’t look up. The façade of indifference hasn’t dropped down yet, so even though I’m acting a bit like a petulant child, I’m not ready to look at him.
His fingers touch my jaw, and he tips my face up.
“You okay?” His voice is soft, and I can hear the concern he has.
“Sorry. I was just lost in thought. What did you just say before?” I respond, trying to play it off.
“We can go. Are you ready?” Cain looks toward the door, and I shrug at his words.
“Sure.”
He nods at me, and then he drops his hand and takes mine. He places my arm in the crook of his and begins to walk. It feels like he’s making a point as he walks proudly toward the exit.
I can feel eyes on me, and I can’t help but smile.
It might not mean anything, but it makes me feel better, nonetheless.
I don’t like the emotional response I just had. As we get into the car and I move toward the window, I realize that putting as much space between us as possible is maybe for the best. Sure, it felt great to be on his arm, but comparing myself to other women is not something I do.
I’m not this person.
I’m confident. I know my worth.
Surrounding myself with these people, even if only for the night, has changed me.
I can’t imagine how Cain lives this way. I peer up at him, narrowing my eyes and trying to read the expression on his face. He doesn’t seem as affected by it as I am. He must be used to it.
I turn my head, and I notice him staring at me.
“How do you do it?” I ask.
And not surprisingly, he knows exactly what I’m talking about.
“I won’t lie, I hate it. But unfortunately, as my team likes to remind me, it’s the nature of the beast. I have a vision, Layla.”
“A wonderful vision,” I add. “Truly innovative, but this”—I gesture to the gathering of people—“I don’t know if I could do it.”
“It means more to me than everything, and I will walk through fire to see it happen.”
His determination is to be respected. “I don’t think I could do what you do.”
“But you do, don’t you see? We aren’t that different. We are two sides of the same coin. You’re here, just like I was there.”
“It’s not the same. This place—”
“When you came here, on the drive, you didn’t know that yet. You did what you had to do to succeed. To obtain your goal.”
“I did.”
My words hang in the air. Filling the space with thought. By the time we pull up to the home I’m staying at, I’m not sure how we will end it.
I hop out of the car, but he scoots over as if to follow me.
“What are you doing?”
“Being a gentleman and walking you to the door. Reginald, I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
We are both quiet as we make our approach. I don’t need to fish out my key because Cain lifts his wrist and the door opens. Before I can comprehend what is happening, his hand is on me, and I’m pulled into the foyer. Then the door shuts, and my back hits the wall. It’s not hard, but it’s enough of a shock for me to open my mouth to ask what’s wrong. That’s until my gaze meets his.
There is no mistaking the look in his eyes as he steps up, caging me in. His arms lift and he essentially has me trapped.
A predator cornering his prey.
Except, in this case, I don’t want to escape. I want to be devoured.
I bite my lip, and his gaze drops to follow the move, then he lifts one hand and trails his finger over my wet lip.
My tongue snakes out of its own accord and licks him. That’s enough to set him off because a growl emanates from his mouth before he’s leaning forward.
When our lips fuse, my knees quiver beneath me.
His hands move to hold my waist, essentially holding me up as he kisses me.
His tongue sweeping against mine.
I follow his lead, reaching my hands around to pull him closer.
He runs his hands up my side and kisses me like I’m the air he needs to stay alive.
